Author: admin

Moody’s Investors Service has reaffirmed Lebanon’s sovereign credit rating at “C,” underscoring the country’s entrenched economic, financial, and social crisis that has persisted since 2020. The rating reflects the agency’s expectation that losses for holders of Lebanese sovereign bonds could exceed 65%. Lebanon has been mired in a financial collapse since 2019, which intensified following the government’s default on its sovereign debt in March 2020. This unraveling led to the dramatic devaluation of the national currency, hyperinflation, and a sharp deterioration in public services. Despite numerous reform pledges, the country has remained locked in a downward spiral, deeply affecting the…

In The Arabists: The Romance of an American Elite Robert Kaplan reminds us of the episode in which April Glaspie, then US ambassador to Ba’athist Iraq and “an Arabist of the old school”, met Saddam Hussain in July 1990. Glaspie failed explicitly to tell the Iraqi dictator, who was massing troops on the border and engaging in a war of words with Kuwait at the time, that an invasion of his southern neighbour would be met with force. Kaplan, who served in the Israeli army, contrasts what he sees as Glaspie’s lack of effectiveness – Saddam was hellbent on the invasion anyway…

Saudi Arabia and Spain have signed four new private-sector agreements aimed at expanding bilateral investment and economic cooperation, as more than 300 officials and investors from both countries convened in Riyadh for the Saudi-Spanish Business Forum on Thursday. The event, organized by the Federation of Saudi Chambers in collaboration with the Saudi Ministry of Economy and Planning and the Ministry of Investment, highlighted investment opportunities, sectoral cooperation, and the Kingdom’s efforts to diversify its economy under Vision 2030. Saudi Minister of Economy and Planning Faisal Alibrahim emphasized that non-oil investments in the Kingdom have increased by 70% since the launch…

Abu Dhabi technology-focused venture capital fund EQIQ says it plans to increase the value of its investments in Iraq as the seeks to recover from more than four decades of war and economic sanctions. Last year, tech startups in Iraq raised less than $3 million in 10 deals, according to entrepreneurship ecosystem development platform Wamda. That puts it far below smaller neighbouring economy Jordan ($15 million) and is a drop in the ocean to Saudi Arabia’s $700 million. Iraq’s investment needs are huge. Once – in the 1970s – one of the more developed economies in the Middle East, the…

Finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of Seven democracies papered over their differences on Thursday, pledging to tackle “excessive imbalances” in the global economy and saying they could increase sanctions on Russia. There had been doubt before the meeting whether it would issue a final communique, in light of divisions over US tariffs and Washington’s reluctance to refer to Russia’s war on Ukraine as illegal. But after three days of talks, participants signed on to a lengthy document devoid of previous language on fighting climate change and which also softened references to the Ukraine war. “We found…

President Trump’s decision to accept the gift of a $400m Boeing 747 aircraft from the government of Qatar has gone down predictably badly in some quarters in the USA. One top Democrat Senator called it “outrageous” and “bribery in broad daylight”. Even Republicans have caviled at the ethical and constitutional issues in accepting such a “gift” from a foreign government, and the estimated $1bn it will cost to retrofit the plane to presidential standards of comfort and security. Trump defenders have taken their tone from the president, who has said it is “stupid” not to accept the plane. They have…

President Trump’s momentous tour of the Gulf states featured a packed agenda of state visits, business meetings and contract announcements.  Unsurprisingly, the world’s media focused on the trillions of dollars of deals that were agreed upon in the aerospace, defence and advanced technology sectors.  However, just as important for the region’s logistics and supply chain industry were the talks between Trump and Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, which took place in Saudi Arabia.  The meeting led to the recognition of the new Syrian government and the lifting of US sanctions, allowing the international community to finally assist in rebuilding the…

Egypt’s central bank said on Thursday that it was cutting overnight interest rates, as it expects economic recovery and lower inflation. The monetary policy committee (MPC) lowered the overnight deposit and lending rates by 100 basis points to 24 percent and 25 percent, respectively, its second rate cut this year, the bank said in a statement. In April, the central bank lowered overnight rates by 225 basis points, its first cut in over five years. The bank said it saw a “moderating trend in headline and core inflation, coupled with easing underlying dynamics, suggests an improvement in inflation expectations”. Economic activity…

US President Donald Trump’s trade negotiators are pushing the EU to make unilateral tariff reductions on US goods, saying without concessions the bloc will not progress in talks to avoid additional 20% “reciprocal” duties, the Financial Times reported on Friday. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer is preparing to tell European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic on Friday that a recent “explanatory note” shared by Brussels for the talks falls short of US expectations, the newspaper said citing unnamed sources. The FT added that the European Union has been pushing for a jointly agreed framework text for the talks but the two…

Non-oil economy attracts investors Abu Dhabi below 2022 peak Saudi still down 6% in 2025 Dubai’s stock index hit fresh 17-year highs this week, as first-quarter earnings rose and a buoyant non-oil economy convinced investors to favour UAE stocks over the much larger Saudi market.  Gulf markets, like bourses worldwide, tumbled in early April after President Donald Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on imports to the US. In contrast to the main Saudi index, which has not recovered all its losses since Trump’s April 2 tariff announcement, UAE indexes have rebounded beyond their April start, and extended a rally that began in…